1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to connecting mass storage device(s) for use by running operating systems in computers (used hereafter as including computer-related or computer-controlled or operating-system-controlled machines or devices); facilitating the removal and insertion or disconnection and connection of such mass storage device(s) which is/are conventionally considered ‘Fixed’ and not ‘Hot-Swappable’ for use in running computers.
2. Description of Related Arts
In any computers installed with ‘Fixed’ mass storage device(s) such as hard disk, optical mass storage devices such as CD/DVD/HD-DVD/Blu-ray Disc drives, MO drives, Solid State Flash Disks/Drives, and other mass storage devices adopting interface types mentioned in the paragraph below, such ‘Fixed’ mass storage device(s) is/are so far not to be swapped or taken away and re-inserted while the computer is under the control of the operating system.
‘Fixed’ and ‘Non-Hot-Swappable’ mass storage device is defined and hereafter referred to as mass storage device that is directly connected to data cable(s) leading out from the data port on data bus of the motherboard and power cable(s) leading out from the power supply, which is also supplying power to the motherboard of a computer. This includes mass storage devices adopting interface types of IDE/EIDE/ATA/Ultra ATA/SATA/SATA II/SCSI/Ultra SCSI/Serial SCSI (Integrated Drive Electronics/Enhanced Integrated Drive Electronics/AT Attachment/Ultra AT Attachment/Serial AT Attachment/Serial AT Attachment II/Small Computer Systems Interface/Ultra Small Computer Systems Interface/Serial Small Computer Systems Interface). The above mentioned interface types are industry standards and commonly used by mass storage devices in computers for data exchange and storage. When attached to computers, mass storage devices adopting these interface types are considered ‘Fixed’ and ‘Non-Hot-Swappable’ because they are normally fixed and installed internally and are usually connected to the internal power supply which supplies also the power to the motherboard of a computer.
‘Hot-Swap-Enabling’ devices are especially designed with the capability for enabling ‘Hot-Swap’ (taken hereafter as meaning also ‘Hot-Plug’) for those ‘Non-Hot-Swappable’ mass storage media or devices attached to it. Using the case of hard disks for illustration, they are designed to have features meeting the following challenges for ‘Hot-Swapping’ as outlined in:
http://www.maxtor.com/en/documentation/white_papers/sata_hot_plug_white_paper.pdf
and quoted as follows:
“controlling electrostatic discharge during insertion of the HDD (Hard Disk Drive) into the system slot to avoid damaging the HDD; controlling in-rush current to the HDD from the host [i.e. the computer] to prevent voltage drops; ensuring the host is able to detect a newly inserted HDD; and properly establishing communications between the HDD and the host.”
Serial ATA (SATA)/Serial ATA II (SATA II) hard disks or other mass storage devices, such as Serial ATA (SATA)/Serial ATA II (SATA II) Solid State Flash Disk/Drive, are designed with ‘Hot-Swap’ capability. However if they are connected to the internal power supply which supplies also the power to the motherboard of a computer, they are usually not to be swapped, and especially when the operating system is running on them in the computer.
As other hard disks or mass storage devices (i.e. other than those using SATA/SATA II or similar technologies) mentioned above are not designed with ‘Hot-Swapping’ capability, they do not safely meet the above-mentioned challenges. Such hard disks or mass storage devices cannot therefore be ‘Hot-Swapped’ without being attached to device(s) especially designed to meet the above-mentioned challenges.
The advent of APM (Advanced Power Management) and ACPI (Advanced Configuration & Power Interface) and the developments in the sphere of Hot-Swapping technologies are intended to provide better power management and to increase flexibility and mobility of using a computer, including peripheral devices attached on or to it.
Specifications for APM and ACPI can be found at:
http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/archive/amp—12.mspx and http://www.acpi.info
Now the use of Hot-Swappable hard disks or hard disks connected to device enabling ‘Hot-Swapping’ is very common for huge computer servers. Externally connected Hot-Swappable hard disks, such as USB-ATA hard disks and Firewire-ATA hard disks also become in widespread use in personal computers and notebook computers. But in one way or another, they are either comparatively costly or relatively slow and involves interface translation, which relies on proper driver support that is not always available.